Holy cow. I never thought I'd do something like the MC200. It was so great to see the XC guys again and talk like old times. They're still the same people they were 9years ago. Hallock, Nate, Sma, and Rudy, those are my brothers. We worked hard over the weekend. Some way more than others. Nater ran over 30 and John and Rudy near 20. If I had more energy I probably could have gone more than my 15 miles but my weekly mileage wasn't high enough to stretch it that far. I give props to Nate for stepping up the way he did. JJ and Miller and Reed and Westlund too. Without those guys I think we would have stopped in Lake Forest and called it a day. We ifnished though which is something to be proud of.
I ran my first 3.5 around 5pm Friday. It was hot and humid and the sun was brutal. Fell like crap the last 3/4 mile. You don't know how far you have left because the miles aren't marked. So for the last mile or so I was basically kicking in because I didn't know where to finish. It was a straight run except for one turn at the end. What looks like a 1/4 mile ahead of you, is really 3/4 which is way further than you think. Stepped in a puddled and had my shirt off. That won't happen again. Needless to say, there's another 20+ lbs for me to lose by XC.
Second run was at 1:15am Saturday. It was 6.5 and was run on the city streets of Milwaukee I think? I'm not sure what town it was in. Had a head lamp, night vest and flashing lights on me so I didn't get hit. Suped up Toyota's bumping passed me kept me on my toes. I felt great out there. Hilly, but that's what I'm used to. I got into a great rhythm, something I haven't felt in some time, and just felt good. Only the least mile hurt because I again didn't know how far the finish was from where I was at. That sucks to feel. Showered at the school I finished at and tried to get some sleep. We drove ahead two or three stops and I pulled out my Bears blanket and pillow and slept under the stars. What a clear night. Had Wheels and the team in my head pushing me along on my runs. I could hear Jonesy and Rhino and the others yelling "come on Hoffy" and it was such a rush and good to know I had some support 200+ miles away.
My last leg I felt like such a wuss. I almost felt like I let my support crew down. My legs felt like lead and I could barely move. I didn't have ENdurox after my 2nd leg and my stomach was churning most of the night. I tried to ease into my last 4 miles and loosen up, but it didn't work. A fellow runner ran with me for abotu 1/2 a mile. We were both just chugging along feeling pain and tiredness. I still couldn't hang and had to walk with 1/2 mile left. I had a perfect Lake Michigan breeze blowing into my face the first mile or so and then we turned away from the lake which was too bad. The views were so beautiful. Looking at myself running on video was not pretty and I need to lose some weight and get my legs and core stronger this summer.
This was such a good experience. I hope I can do it again next year, but I really doubt we'll get the same guys together again. I may even have a kid by then. I like 5K's. They're easier and over faster, but it's good to test your limits. I don't know how some people become ultra's. That's just crazy and insane. I hope to switch gears a little here. Recoup and enjoy the summer and slowly ease into training for the QC 1/2 marathon this fall.
Keep on chugging friends.
-Hoffy
No comments:
Post a Comment